The Canadian Automotive Museum in Oshawa has racked up nearly $3,000 in municipal fines after the city alleged that unhoused people loitering, fighting and littering on its property violated local bylaws, prompting the charitable organization to call for support rather than penalties.
According to Alexandra Miller-Gerrard, executive director and curator of the museum, the city issued an order in June 2025 citing “disorderly” and “nuisance” activity on the property and requiring the museum to address it through “consistent preventative security measures.” Since Sept. 15, the museum has received seven separate fines totalling $2,750.
Miller-Gerrard said the museum has already taken steps to comply, including improving exterior lighting, upgrading security cameras, and dedicating more staff time to monitoring the parking lot and reviewing footage. But she said the organization cannot afford the fines, nor the cost of full-time security or a new perimeter fence.
Museum Calls for Community Solution
In a post on Instagram this week, the museum said it was “asking for partnership and practical solutions, not simply for the museum, but for the continued vitality of downtown Oshawa.” Miller-Gerrard said the museum’s board wants the city to review and remove the fines, and would like funding for additional security cameras, anti-graffiti coating for the building, and improvements that would make the parking lot feel more welcoming.
She said the museum is calling on the city, the Region of Durham, social services, downtown businesses and other cultural sites to work together on a broader solution, arguing that residents deserve to enjoy a safe downtown core.
Miller-Gerrard said the museum has suffered three broken windows over the past two years, and its HVAC system was out of service for nearly a month after someone stripped copper from the building’s exterior. Its security cameras have also been vandalized, and she said staff regularly see open drug use, loitering and petty crime on site, along with near-daily graffiti.
She said the museum first reached out to the city in 2024, before the fines began, and also contacted Durham Regional Police for help addressing activity in the downtown core. She said she believes the museum’s parking lot is not the preferred location for unhoused people gathering there, but that they have few alternatives given the city’s broader homelessness crisis.
Expert Points to Bylaw Enforcement Approach
Tyler Frederick, an associate professor in the criminology and justice program at Ontario Tech University and a board member of Back Door Mission, a downtown Oshawa social service hub, said cities are under pressure to manage visible homelessness and often turn to bylaw enforcement rather than addressing its underlying causes.
Frederick said tightening security in one location risks simply displacing the issue elsewhere, without resolving why people are on the street in the first place. He said the city should instead pursue collaborative discussions on improving safety downtown.
Miller-Gerrard said some visitors have told the museum they do not feel safe in the area, something she said is “the last thing we want to hear,” adding that the museum wants to remain part of a vibrant downtown Oshawa.
The City of Oshawa has not responded to a request for comment. Miller-Gerrard said the museum is scheduled to meet with city staff on Friday to discuss next steps.
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